GEORGIA TECH QUARTERBACK JOE HAMILTON
5-10, 189, Senior, Alvin, S.C.
LAST GAME:
Georgia Tech 45, Clemson 42
Quarterback Joe Hamilton tied the Georgia Tech record with five touchdown passes and collected 410 yards of total offense–the most EVER by an individual against the Clemson defense–to lead the Yellow Jackets to a 45-42 victory over the Tigers. Hamilton completed 22 of 30 passes for 310 yards with touchdown passes of 28, 42, 12, nine and three yards. He also rushed for 88 yards on 19 carries.
Hamilton’s fifth touchdown pass made him the Atlantic Coast Conference’s all-time leader with 60. He also set Tech single season records for passing yards (2,438) and total offense (3,042), with two games still to play (at Wake Forest, Nov. 20; Georgia, Nov. 27).
1999 HIGHLIGHTS
LEADS THE NATION in passing efficiency with a rating of 182..3,just behind the NCAA record of 183.3 Third in the nation in totaloffense with 338.4 yards per game Completing 68 percent of hispasses with 24 touchdowns and 30 TDR while directing a unit thatleads the nation in total offense (510.7) and scoring (41.6) Withtwo games to play, has already set school records for passing yards(2,438), touchdown passes (24), total offense (3,042), TDR (30) andrushing yards by a quarterback (604) Finalist for the Johnny UnitasGolden Arm Award as the nation’s top senior quarterback Turned inthe most prolific game of his career, and one of the best in schoolhistory, in Tech’s 41-35 defeat at No. 1 Florida State with 387yards passing, four touchdown passes, 405 yards of total offenseand five TDR Completed 22 of 25 passes against FSU, hitting hislast 15 attempts, with touchdown strikes of 80, 56, 22 and 11yards; also scored on a 19-yard run and was named ACC OffensiveBack of the Week Tied the Tech school record with five touchdownpasses in Tech’s 45-42 win over Clemson, when he passed for 322yards and rushed for 88 yards for a total of 410 yards of totaloffense, the most EVER against the Clemson defense School-record474 yards of total offense against Maryland as he passed for 387yards and three touchdowns while rushing for 87 yards, including a41-yard scoring run; had 257 yards passing in the first half aloneDirected fourth-quarter comebacks in back-to-back wins over NorthCarolina and Duke Against UNC, he drove the Jackets from their owntwo-yard line to set up the tying field goal in the final 1:10(three completions for 73 yards on the drive), then scored thewinning touchdown in overtime on a six-yard run Passed for 324yards and rushed for 59 against Duke while rallying Tech for 10points in the final seven minutes Passed for three touchdowns andhad 295 yards of total offense in 48-21 win over NC StateCareer-high 100 yards rushing and two TDs, plus 161 yards passingand one TD pass in win over Central Florida as he became just thesecond QB in school history to rush and pass for 100 yards in agame
CAREER HIGHLIGHTS
Led Tech to a 20-5 record in the last 25 games, including MVPhonors in two bowl wins The ACC’s all-time leader in total offensewith 9,888 yards (8,260 passing and 1,628 rushing) and touchdownpasses with 60 Broke the mark total offense set by former Techquarterback Shawn Jones (9,296) Tech’s career leader in TDR (78)and rushing yards by a quarterback with 1,628 (11th overall) Needsjust 182 yards to break Shawn Jones Tech record of 8,441 careerpassing yards Career pass efficiency rating of 148.1 is the bestmark in ACC history Stands 5th in ACC annals in career passingyards (8,260) and second in TDR Has thrown 50 touchdowns and just16 interceptions in his last 25 games Has engineered fourth-quartergame-winning drives six times over the last two seasons, againstDuke and North Carolina in 1999, and versus No. 17 Notre Dame, No.12 Georgia, No. 6 Virginia and Clemson in 1998
WHAT OTHERS SAY ABOUT HAMILTON:
It’s been a long time since our defense looked that helpless.
Florida State head coach Bobby Bowden
I can’t imagine a better college football player than Hamilton.
Maryland head coach Ron Vanderlinden
Hamilton does more for his team than any player in the country.
Duke head coach Carl Franks
I don’t know how they find time to practice all that. I’ve not seen a quarterback like Joe Hamilton–ever.
Maryland head coach Ron Vanderlinden
Joe’s invaluable, not only because he makes plays, but he’s checking off and putting us into plays where we have a chance to be successful. The decision comes down to Joe, and he’s so smart. Think about it. We lose our top two tailbacks for the season, we’re using a defensive lineman as a our fullback some of the time, and we’re still putting up the numbers we’re putting up. It’s got to be him.
Georgia Tech offensive coordinator Ralph Friedgen
There’s not a more productive or more valuable player in the country. If he’s not the Heisman Trophy winner, I don’t know who is. Joe Hamilton’s the Heisman winner. Period.
Georgia Tech head coach George O’Leary
